Christmas in schools, digital surveillance, road bills move on

The Indiana Statehouse

The Indiana House and Senate voted on dozens of bills today as both chambers approached deadlines to move legislation to the opposite chamber.

The House deadline was today. The Senate has until Wednesday to move bills to the House.

Here's a look at some of the bills acted on today.

Bill would allow school Christmas celebrations

Christmas might come a little earlier this year for some Hoosiers after state senators unanimously passed a bill to allow holiday celebrations in schools.

The legislation would let schools decorate with Nativity scenes or menorahs if paired with a secular symbol or one from another religion. Legislation also would let schools teach the history of winter holidays and give holiday greetings, such as "Merry Christmas."

Ten other states have proposed similar laws.

The Indiana branch of the American Civil Liberties Union says the bill would be unconstitutional and would let public schools endorse religion.

House OKs limits on digital surveillance

A bill meant to extend Hoosiers' privacy rights in a world of digital devices and electronic tracking passed the House 85-11 and heads to the Indiana Senate.

House Bill 1009, authored by Rep. Eric Koch, R-Bedford, requires police to obtain a search warrant before using a phone to track a person's location or using an unmanned device - such as a drone - to gather information in most situations.

It also requires police to get a warrant before they can demand that a person turns over his or her password for a computer, phone or other electronics device.

The legislation is one of several privacy-related bills moving this session.

Already, the House has passed HB 1384, which prohibits law enforcement from searching a phone unless there is probable cause to believe that a crime involves the device. Similar legislation - Senate Bill 64 - is also moving in the Senate.

The moves come after an Indianapolis Star report about Indiana State Police having a device that collects cell phone data. And there are national reports that federal agencies have been combing the mobile phone records of millions of Americans. (TheStatehouseFile.com)

House measure speeds up using $400M in road funds

A bill to free up $400 million for state highways and assign $25 million of it to local road projects passed the Indiana House.

House Bill 1002, authored by Rep. Tim Brown, R-Crawfordsville, transfers the balance of the Major Moves 2020 Trust Fund to the state highway fund before July 1, 2015.

The money was set aside by lawmakers last year for future projects.

But Brown said if the state waited to use the fund, it "could lose 20-28 percent of the purchasing power of that money due to inflation, especially the inflation of the products used to make roads."

Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso, authored an amendment to the bill that would give $25 million of the total for a local infrastructure grant fund.

Local communities could then receive a portion of the fund to undertake road projects, providing they can contribute 10 percent of the total amount requested.

The legislation received support from both parties during discussion and passed 91-2.

The bill moves to the Senate for further consideration. (TheStatehouseFile.com)

Bill requires disclosure of meth houses

Legislation that would require disclosure of property previously used to produce methamphetamine passed the House.

The bill, authored by Rep. Wendy McNamara, R-Mount Vernon, requires that property that was a site for meth labs or a dumping ground for the drug be listed on a website until 90 days after it was certified decontaminated.

One provision shifts control and maintenance of the meth laboratory website to the Indiana State Police from the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute.

Rep. Karlee Macer, D-Indianapolis, urged support for the bill during discussion.

"Anything that we can do to, of course, help the safety of our families and make sure that we are more aware of what's happened in the homes previously is very important."

The bill passed unanimously and heads to the Senate. (TheStatehouseFile.com)

House OKs family tax breaks

The House gave unanimous approval to two of Republican Gov. Mike Pence's priorities for 2014.

The chamber backed measures increasing personal income tax exemptions and establishing an adoption tax credit. Both measures won broad bipartisan support shortly before a key midterm deadline for lawmakers.

The income tax plan would automatically increase tax exemptions based on the consumer price index, saving individuals from $16 to $18 more in taxes each year. It also increases the child tax credit $500.

The adoption proposal would create a state tax credit for families that qualify for an existing federal tax credit promoting adoption. It also establishes a study committee that would examine ways to promote adoption. (The Associated Press)

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Christmas in schools, digital surveillance, road bills move on

The Indiana House and Senate voted on dozens of bills today as both chambers approached deadlines to move legislation to the opposite chamber.